My Brother's Keeper
by CBloom2
Summary: It's a reveal story that is very, very loosely based on spoilers for this weeks episode, but with an outcome that I want from the show, but more than likely won't get! Hurting Ethan just a little bit more (which is not in the spoilers - just in my story). Caring and protective Cal thrown in for good measure.
1. Chapter 1

**Now I realise that this may sound unheard of, but I've been struggling for inspiration lately, even though the recent episodes have been amazing! So I've decided to hurt Ethan just a little more (no surprise there then) but I'm writing it so that the brothers are still supportive of each other at the end (you all know how I feel about the brothers being apart).**

 **As I'm sure you know, I don't own anyone that you recognise - if I did, the spoiler that I read for this weeks episode just wouldn't be happening! Enjoy.**

 **My Brother's Keeper**

Dr Ethan Hardy was unable to move. He was frozen to the spot. Had he heard right? He was sure his brother had just said that the woman currently sat on the bed in front of him, who had been treated for a nasty burn, who was so obviously suffering from Huntingtons disease, was their mother! Glancing over to see said brother still holding onto one of her hands with tears cascading down his cheeks, made Ethan realise that he had indeed heard correctly.

"Ethan..." Cal croaked out, seeing his little brother rooted to the spot. He was very wary of the younger man when he saw him like this. He looked towards their mother, who hung her head, not wanting to look at either of them in that moment.

"What...do...what do you mean?" Ethan finally managed to grind out.

"We're adopted, Emilie here is our mother," Cal told him, afraid of what the younger doctor may do next - although what he did do caught him by surprise. Ethan looked to Cal then to Emilie, who was just lifting her head to look at him. When their eyes met, Ethan yanked the curtain open and left the cubicle, leaving the remaining two occupants bewildered.

"I should go to him," Cal thought out loud, "I should've told him sooner. I wish I'd been brave enough..."

Emilie patted his arm, "You thought you were doing the right thing..." she stammered out.

"That's my trouble. I think I'm doing the right thing, but then end up doing it the wrong way! He'll never forgive me for this, I just know it!" More tears fell down his cheeks at that thought - just knowing that their relationship, which had been in a really good place prior to this revelation, would never be the same again.

He saw a tear track down Emilie's face, which he gently wiped away with a tissue, "Please don't be sad - this is not your fault," he told her kindly, "I'll see if I can talk to him. I may have to send Charlie to finish off here, but I will see you soon...if you would like to," he finished with a small smile.

Emilie's eyes filled with hope, "I would love that," she told him honestly.

He couldn't bring himself to kiss her just yet, so he settled for giving her arm a gentle, affectionate pat, then left her behind to find his brother.

As he walked through the ED, Charlie caught his eye, so he changed direction, "I take it he knows," the older nurse commented.

Cal sighed, "Yes - not in the way I wanted to tell him, but I suppose that wasn't working out for me anyway," he looked around him, "Don't suppose you've seen him?"

Charlie couldn't help but smile a little, "Hurricane Ethan blew himself into the staff room no more than a couple of minutes ago."

Cal offered his own tight smile as he nodded his head and cautiously made his way across the corridor. He quietly opened the door to an obviously irrate little brother. He stood silently trying to guage the perfect opportunity to begin talking, but none seemed to present itself. Suddenly, Ethan stopped dead and spun round to face him, "How long have you known?" he growled.

Cal stepped into the room, "Since the paternity test...I noticed that my blood group was O and seeing as Matilda's was AB then I realised that she couldn't be my mum..."

Ethan ran a hand through his hair, "And you didn't think to tell me?"

"I wanted to get answers to questions that I knew you'd have before I told you, then there never seemed to be an appropriate time with everything that happened..." It sounded lame, even to him but at the time, it seemed to make sense. He watched as his brother drew in deep breaths to try to calm himself down, but it didn't seem to be working. He took a step closer, "Ethan - you need to calm your breathing..."

"Don't tell me what I need to do!" He snarled back at him.

Cal took a deep breath of his own, to try to calm his own nerves, "I know you may not believe me, but I was trying to protect you from all this."

"You were trying to protect me?" Ethan fired back, "You weren't trying to protect me! It was all about you Cal - it's alwa...always...bout...y..." Ethan stuttered as he launched himself at his brother, landing a punch to his stomach, which knocked some of the breath out of him. Cal pushed him back as he had no desire to hurt him, "Jus...go...lea...me...lone," the younger man mumbled.

As he turned back round to face the older man, Cal felt a vice like grip take hold in his stomach. He watched in undiluted horror as his little brother began to list to one side - almost as if he was drunk. It would have made him laugh had it not been for the fact that Ethan was trying to lift his left arm, probably to punch him again, but he couldn't seem to lift it. He could also hear incoherant mumblings coming from his brother's mouth, which he noticed was now starting to droop to one side. He dashed to the door and saw Max not far away, "Max, get me a trolley - now!"

The young porter recognised the urgency in his friends demand and shot off to find a trolley.

Meanwhile the young doctor ran to his brother's side as the younger sibling began to crumple to the floor. Cal noticed the petrified expression in Ethan's eyes, "C...Cal...some...somethin...ss...wron..." he stumbled over his words.

Cal just held onto him as tightly as he dared, "Try to stay calm little brother," he told him gently, as Max and Rita appeared through the door.

"Help me get him on the there," he asked them. Without question, they helped him lay the younger man onto the trolley, then took off at high speed towards Resus. As they quickly made their way through the ED, Lily caught sight of them as she was leaving after her shift. She jogged quickly to their side, "What's going on?" she demanded as she became aware of Cal's tortured face, "It's Ethan," he told her, "It looks like he's having a stroke."

 **First chapter done. I hope it's ok. Apparently, there is a type of stroke that can be brought on by stress, which causes blood pressure to rise, which in turn causes blood vessels to burst with bleeding around the brain.**

 **If I'm honest, I haven't got any more written just at the moment so updates may be few and far between, but I will do my best.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to read and review the first chapter. I hope you know how much it means to me.**

 **Here is chapter 2 - I'm no doctor, so anything medical I write is basically from the internet, so please don't kill me! I'm also sorry that this has taken a while to post, but I've been away for the weekend plus I had to mourn the loss of the brothers bond (hopefully only temporarily).**

 **My Brother's Keeper - Chapter 2**

"Ok, what have we got?" Zoe, who seemed to have appeared from nowhere demanded as the group of anxious medical personel wheeled Ethan into Resus.

"I was talking to him...well, we were having words, and he suddenly started mumbling, not making sense, then I noticed him listing to one side. He was trying to lift his arm, probably to hit me, but he couldn't lift it - then I noticed his mouth..." Cal reeled off while keeping his eyes fixed on his brother, who seemed to be drifting in and out.

"Ok, let's get some bloods sent off asap - we'll need a CT..." Zoe ordered as everyone rallied around and did their jobs. Cal stayed by Ethan's side, but he was soon getting in Zoe's way, "Max..." she whispered.

The young porter nodded his understanding and put an arm around his distraught friend, "Cal, come on mate, let's wait outside - let Zoe work her magic," he advised as he tried to move him.

Cal yanked himself out of his arm, "No! I'm not leaving him. Look at him, he's scared, he needs me," he insisted rather loudly.

"Cal, he can sense that you're scared," Zoe told him kindly, "He's becoming more unsettled. Please wait outside, for Ethan's sake."

She knew that it was a bit unkind to use the stricken man, but it had the desired effect. Cal sagged into Max's arm and allowed the younger man to guide him out of the doors.

Lily, who had stayed quietly on the sidelines, now stepped forward, "Dr Hanna, I know I'm off duty, but could I assist?"

Zoe paused, looking dubious, "I don't know Lily - we know how you feel about Ethan..."

"I can assure you Zoe that my feelings for Ethan will not impact on my ability to treat him," she insisted quite forcefully.

Zoe sighed, "Ok then, but any unprofessionalism..."

"I understand, thank you," Lily replied as she grabbed her stethoscope and threw it around her neck.

While Resus carried on being a hive of activity, Cal could only watch with fear running through every fibre of his being, as his friends and colleagues battled to save his precious brother. He was grateful for Max's silent support as every different medical scenario came to mind. He was brought out of his musings by the doors flying open to reveal Ethan's bed being moved. He immediately rushed to his brothers side and took hold of his hand, "Ethan, can you hear me?"

Ethan cracked open an eye, "Mmmm, yes. You...ok...?" he stuttered out causing Cal to once again try to stem a flood of tears that threatened to overwhelm him. How could his brother be concerned about him?

"Hey, I'm not the one on the bed," he tried to lighten to mood slightly. His heart skipped a beat however, when he saw Ethan try to smile, but only half of his mouth would conform.

"We're taking him for a CT to see if we can see where the bleed might have come from..." Zoe told him, just as Charlie came into view.

"Charlie, Ethan's had a stroke by the looks of it," Cal told him, sounding like a young child talking to his father.

Charlie's expression turned to one of great concern as he came up beside the young doctor, "They're taking him for a scan," Cal filled him in. Charlie laid a hand on his shoulder and leaned a little closer to him "Cal, you're mum is getting agitated - it's as if she knows that something has happened. You need to go to her - she needs you."  
"No I need to be with my brother," Cal insisted.

"Look I'll go with Ethan and I promise I will let you know as soon as he his back from the scan - your mum needs you," he said, ignoring the puzzled looks of the assembled people.

Cal looked down at his brother, who now had his eyes closed, seemingly resting, then back up at Charlie, "Ok, but you will let me know as soon as you know anything."

"I promise I will come and find you myself," the older man assured the anxious doctor.

Cal glanced at his brother once more, then leaned down and gently kissed his forhead, not caring who saw him, for once, "I'll be back Ethan," he whispered to him.

He then stood and watched with trepidation as they wheeled his brother into the lift.

As the doors closed, Cal turned on his heel and went in search of his mother's cubicle. He pulled open the curtain, suprised to see her trying to get her coat on, "What are you doing?" he asked abruptly, causing her to jump slightly, as she hadn't heard him come in.

"I'm leaving," she stammered, "You don't want me here. Ethan doesn't want me here..."

"No, no, you can't leave just yet..." Cal told her, "We're still waiting on some test results."

Emilie stopped her actions as she noticed a slight catch in Cal's voice.

"Wh...what's ha...happening?" she asked as she watched her newly found son's face crease with worry.

"Nothing. We just need to make sure we've given you the best treatment that we could," he tried to reassure her.

"Where's your brother?" she queried.

"He's busy," was all Cal said.

"What's happened to him?" Emilie stuttered. She couldn't explain it, but she just knew that something had happened to the younger man.

Cal seemed to deflate in front of her. He slumped down on the chair by the side of the bed, with his head in his hands, "I think he's had a stroke," he blurted out without any thought.

Emilie gasped loudly, "Th...this is all m...my f...fault," she mumbled.

Cal shook his head, "No it's not your fault," he insisted, "If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I just don't look after him as well as I should do! He's been under so much stress recently and I haven't been there for him. I've been wallowing in my own problems, like I always do, instead of supporting him through his troubles."

He hadn't realised that he was crying until a tear drop fell onto the bed. Emilie looked sad as she picked up his hand, trying to still her trembling to offer her son some support, "I'm sure you tried your best," she told him, "Did he tell you about his troubles?"

Cal shook his head, "No, he'd never do that. But I should've sensed it. Ethan rarely shares anything especially when it's to do with work..." he ran a hand through his hair, "He has always been there for me - no matter what I threw at him, he always managed to pick me up, dust me down, and help me get ready to face the world - and how do I repay him? By lying to him. For once my brother needed me to step up for him, and I failed..."

Emilie squeezed his hand in support and she hoped, comfort, "Perhaps now is the time for you to 'step up' as you call it. You're a good brother Cal, I can see that just from those few times I've seen you. Ethan will need your strength now," she told him in no uncertain terms.

Cal nodded his understanding, "I know he will, I just hope I can be that person. Ethan is twice the man I'll ever be."

Suddenly, the curtain was pulled open to reveal Charlie. Cal felt his stomach sink wondering what news he had for him.

"H...how's Eth...Ethan?" Emilie asked, before Cal could get a word in.

Charlie smiled slightly at her concern, "We located a slight rupture in a blood vessel in his brain, causing a small bleed..."

"So he's had a Haemorrhagic stroke then?" Cal queried.

Charlie nodded, "Brought on by actue stress, causing his blood pressure to increase...oh god, this really is my fault," Cal finished, breathing deeply trying to control his emotions.

"He was lucky he was with you Cal when it happened. Even though you were arguing, your prompt action most definitely saved his life!" The older man told him.

"If I had been a better brother in the first place, he wouldn't have got so stressed," Cal exclaimed bitterly.

Emilie laid a trembling hand on his arm, "You saved his life - that's all that matters now, that and helping him with his recovery," she told him, speaking carefully so that she didn't stutter to much.

But Cal was feeling far to guilty to be hearing straight, "But what if he doesn't want me there? He was pretty hacked off with me," Cal cried.

Charlie looked from the woman in the bed to the young doctor who would barely lift his head to look at them, weighed down so heavily by the guilt he was feeling, "Cal, you two have been through a lot of tough times and I think that you're the only person that Ethan would want by his side at this moment," the older nurse told him honestly.

 **So that was chapter 2. Cal is wallowing in his guilt a bit isn't he?**

 **Chapter 3 will be Ethan starting his recovery and I am going to have the boys talking things through. I am NOT going to end it as the last episode ended things.**

 **I realise this is not the best chapter I have ever written but I hope it reads ok.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry I haven't updated - hit a bit of a wall, but I'm slowly but surely plodding my way back.**

 **Thank you one and all who have read and reviewed this so far - you are all amazing.**

 **Not sure how long this story will be - we will have to see what I come up with haa haa. (Not medically trained at all, so it could quite possibly be completly wrong!**

 **My Brother's Keeper Chapter 3**

Charlie could see that Cal wasn't listening very well to what he was trying to tell him, so he decided to save that particular pep talk for another time, "He's asleep but stable at the moment, but we have brought him back down to Resus for a couple of hours to monitor him - would you like to see him?"

Cal's face told him all he needed to know. The younger man shot up from out of his chair ready to leave the cubicle, "Erm Cal...aren't you forgetting someone?"

For a split second, Cal looked to Charlie in confusion, then he remembered Emilie, "Oh I'm so sorry..." he gasped out.

"It's...o...k..." she stammered, not wanting him to see how hurt she was that he was about to abandon her.

Cal walked back to her side, "No, it's not ok. You are actually ready to be discharged..." he trailed off as he furrowed his brow in deep thought. He glanced up at Charlie, then to his mother, "Would you like to see him? I know he's not awake but..."

He stopped when he saw tears pool in his mother's eyes, "I w...would lo...love that very much," she told him honestly.

Charlie felt a small lump of emotion in his throat, "I'll get your chair," he told her as he reached round and wheeled it to the side of the bed. The two men helped her be seated and Cal pushed her towards Resus.

As the door opened, Zoe and Lily both turned towards the interruption, smiling at Charlie and Cal, then looking puzzled by the woman in the wheelchair. They moved out of the way, glancing at the young doctor, "This is Emilie...she's our mother," he told them, watching for their reactions.

If the two women were shocked, they didn't show it. Instead, Zoe walked over to her and shook her hand, "Hi Emilie I'm Dr Zoe Hanna, I treated Ethan...he's going to be fine with plenty of rest and maybe some physio. That will all depend on how much paralysis occurred."

"Th...thank y...you for loo...looking after him," she said as she looked at her younger son laid on the bed.

"It's our pleasure. He's a decent man - heart of gold," Zoe told her, "Er Cal, can I borrow you for just a moment?"

Cal looked like he was going to decline, but seeing the look on Zoe's face, he knew that it would be better to agree. He pushed Emilie up near Ethan's head, "I'll just be a minute," he told her.

He walked towards the door where Zoe was waiting for him, "Is this the family issues that Charlie was talking about earlier - when you and Ethan were fighting?"

Cal dropped his head as he nodded sadly, "Yes. I've known for a few weeks but Ethan has only just found out, due to my cowardice..."

"And what about the Huntingtons?" The senior doctor asked.

Cal sighed, "We don't know yet - next on the list."

"I could ask the lab to run Ethan's blood work to test for the gene - we could test you also..."

Cal looked panicked, "Oh I don't know if..."

"Look we can do it, then you can look at the results when you are ready...you can't bury your head in the sand with this one Cal, you know you have to face it," Zoe insisted.

Cal sucked in a deep breath, which he blew out as he nodded his agreement, "Just not while Emilie is here," was his only condition.

"Not a problem. I wish you'd come to me Cal, I could've helped."

"I know, but as always, I thought I could handle it - great job I did of that," he said as he angrily wiped away a stray tear.

"Look we'll leave you alone for a while. We're looking into getting him a bed upstairs, but you can stay with him for now," she told him as she patted his arm and left with Lily in tow.

Cal smiled his thanks, then turned towards his brother, stopping in his tracks. His mother had leaned over in her chair and was stroking Ethan's hair. She stopped abruptly when she noticed that Cal was watching, "No don't stop, it's ok," he assured her. She smiled happily and turned back to her youngest son.

Charlie had a big grin on his face as he watched the older woman, "This is lovely Cal, what you've done for her," he told the young doctor.

"I haven't done anything!"

"You have let her come and see her youngest son. You could've just sent her home, not knowing if Ethan was alright or not - but you put all the drama aside and gave her a great gift...hope - hope that maybe, just maybe she will have both her sons back for the remainder of her time, and that's a great thing Cal," Charlie choked.

"C...Cal..." he heard his mother call frantically. Cal spun round to face her noticing she was staring intently at Ethan. He glanced to his brother and to his surprise, he saw his brother's eyes trying to open once more. He dashed to his side, standing behind the wheelchair, "Hey there sleepy head, you're supposed to be sleeping," he smiled at his woozy brother.

"Sleep is for wimps," Ethan murmered, his eyes already closing again. Cal didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his little brother's attempt at humour - but what happened next blew any control that he had out of the window.

Ethan, although extrememly tired, turned his head towards them both, looking straight at Emilie. He smiled slightly - his smile this time was more equal, "Mum?"

 **So there you have it. Kind of went in a different direction than I'd originally planned - but that's the beauty of fiction!**

 **Not really sure where I'm going with this now I've changed it slightly, so if you have any ideas, as always, I'm very pleased to receive them.**

 **Til next time xx**


End file.
